Instructions for use with "Phenobarbital" reports that the drug belongs to the class of antiepileptic and hypnotics. You can buy this medicine only with a prescription from a neurologist, neurologist, or psychiatrist. "Phenobarbital" is actively used for various kinds of toxic effects on the nervous system. It increases the detoxification function of the liver, due to which it can be used for poisoning with ethanol-containing drinks. It has a sedative and calming effect.
Product release form
Instructions for use with "Phenobarbital" reports that the drug is available in the following forms:
- tablets;
- powder for mixing with liquid for injection;
- ampoules for intramuscular injection.
Tablets can be used for treatment at home. They are convenient in that the patient can take the necessary dose at any time - whether he is at work, in transport or at home. An injection method of application is preferable in a hospital setting, where you can carry out round-the-clock medical monitoring of the patient and stop possible side effects.
Active ingredient and principle of action
The main active ingredient of the drug is a substance called phenobarbital. Microcrystalline cellulose, potato starch, talc, lactose, sodium dioxide are used as auxiliary components in tablets.
Pharmacopoeia indicates that the molecular formula of phenobarbital as a separate substance is C12H12N2O3. It belongs to the class of barbiturates. This is the name of a large group of tranquilizers of the past generation, with antiepileptic, sedative, sedative effects. Barbiturates according to the duration of exposure to the body can be divided into:
- fast acting drugs;
- intermediate action;
- long acting.
Modern doctors do not like to prescribe "Phenobarbital" for the reason that long-acting barbiturates often cause drug dependence. Therefore, the dosage and duration of treatment must be selected very carefully.
The principle of action of phenobarbital is that this substance increases the sensitivity of GABA receptors to neurotransmitters. The substance is able to affect the period of opening of neurons, which contributes to a more active entry of currents of chlorine ions into them. As a result, it increases the inhibitory effect of GABA. With a high concentration of phenobarbital in the blood, the currents of calcium ions through the cell membranes slow down. This leads to a strong sedative effect, drowsiness, lethargy, decreased motor activity and reaction rate.
Often, "Phenobarbital" is prescribed as a means of stopping seizures in epilepsy, psychosis, and catarrhal schizophrenia. The anticonvulsant effect of the drug is due to the suppression of the activity of certain amino acids and the effect on voltage-gated sodium channels.
Indications for use
The instruction for Phenobarbital tablets reports that the drug can be useful in the following diseases and conditions:
- epilepsy (with the exception of absences);
- hangover period;
- withdrawal syndrome;
- hyperactivity, motor disinhibition;
- sleep problems of various etiologies;
- hemolytic state in infants;
- anxiety, unmotivated aggression, irritability.
Contraindications
The instruction for "Phenobarbital" reports the following contraindications for use:
- chronic renal failure;
- suicidal tendency;
- depression of the respiratory center;
- individual intolerance to the active substance.
At high dosages, phenobarbital provokes inhibition of the centers of the medulla oblongata. This causes a depressed, depressed state, a decrease in cognitive abilities and a delayed response to external stimuli.
Side effects when taking
Instructions for use with the tablets "Phenobarbital" reports the following side effects of the drug:
- From the nervous system: asthenia, unmotivated aggression, increased irritability, tremor of the extremities, severe drowsiness. In rare cases, the development of paradoxical reactions is possible (most often in elderly people and children) - sharp excitement, motor anxiety, restless hands syndrome.
- On the part of the skeletal system of the body - rickets, osteogenesis (with prolonged and uncontrolled use of high doses).
- From the organs of the gastrointestinal tract: nausea, impaired liver function, diarrhea, bloating (rare).
- On the part of the cardiovascular system: megaloblastic anemia, jumps in blood pressure (often lowering rates).
- From allergic reactions: urticaria, itching of the skin, swelling of some parts of the body, Stevens-Johnson syndrome.
Drug Dependence on Phenobarbital
Prolonged and uncontrolled intake of "Phenobarbital" (instructions and reviews confirm this) leads to the development of drug barbiturate dependence. This is manifested in motor anxiety, inadequate reactions to the surrounding reality, tremor of the extremities, visual hallucinations, weakness and dizziness.
When you try to cancel the drug, all these symptoms worsen. In patients with barbiturate dependence, normal sleep often disappears, as a result of which a state of acute delirium develops. This condition lasts from several hours to five days and requires hospitalization of the patient.
If you do not take any therapeutic action to stop delirium, then visual and auditory hallucinations develop. They can “dictate” the patient to harm themselves or others. Many crimes are committed precisely in the condition of an overdose of medications in combination with alcoholic beverages.
Delirium develops only with the regular use of large doses of Phenobarbital. Depending on small doses (two to three tablets per day), persistent insomnia most often appears, which disappears on average ten to twelve days after the drug is completely discontinued.
Recommended Dosages
If the patient’s goal is to have a sedative and sedative effect, then you need to take one tablet twice a day.
When using the drug for insomnia, they usually take 0.1-0.2 grams at bedtime, as an anticonvulsant, 0.05-0.1 grams twice a day.
Instructions for use "Phenobarbital" (reviews confirm this fact) reports that it is forbidden to prescribe therapeutic doses for yourself. It is very easy to exceed the amount of active substance, not taking into account the height, weight, gender and individual characteristics of the body. Therefore, the exact dosage of the drug can only be prescribed by a psychiatrist or neurologist.
"Phenobarbital": instructions for use for newborns
In rare cases, the drug can be used to treat seizures in young children and adolescents.
The instruction to "Phenobarbital" reports the maximum single dosages:
- infants from birth to six months - 0.005 g;
- infants from six months to a year - 0.01 g;
- children aged one to four - 0.02 g;
- children aged four to nine years - 0.04 g;
- children from nine to fourteen years old - 0.075 g.
Use of these dosages on your own, without the knowledge of a doctor, is prohibited. According to the instructions for use of "Phenobarbital", in children the incidence of side effects is higher, so unauthorized intake is fraught with possible problems.
The choice of this drug for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in a child is a bad idea, since too much sedative effect of barbiturate will lead the child to drowsiness and poor learning.
Alcohol compatibility
Despite the fact that the indications for taking the drug mean "hangover and withdrawal symptoms", you should be extremely careful when mixing "Phenobarbital" with ethanol-containing drinks.
The instruction to "Phenobarbital" mentions that a direct contraindication to taking is the simultaneous administration of a medicine with alcoholic beverages. This can cause convulsions, profuse vomiting, and toxic liver damage. With an overdose of the drug, combined with drinking alcoholic beverages, a fatal outcome is possible.
Taking pills during the hangover and withdrawal syndrome implies the use of "Phenobarbital" when the patient is sobered up and is tormented by insomnia, panic attacks, anxiety. The drug perfectly removes these symptoms and allows the patient to go to work and lead a full lifestyle, despite withdrawal symptoms. The most important thing is not to abuse alcohol again during treatment. Often just this, repeated use of "Phenobarbital" on the background of drinking ethanol-containing drinks, leads to fatal consequences for the patient.
Compatibility with other drugs
Taking "Phenobarbital" in parallel with acetazolamide can lead to the development of rickets. The substances of these drugs antagonize with each other and adversely affect bone tissue.
The instruction for Phenobarbital warns that taking valproic acid can cause a decrease in the absorption of the active substance. In this regard, the sedative and sedative effect is significantly reduced. "Phenobarbital" is undesirable to take simultaneously with valproic acid preparations.
You can not take the drug in parallel with the alcohol tinctures "Corvalol" and "Valoserdin", since they contain a small amount of phenobarbital. When used together, the proportion of the active substance in the patient’s blood plasma increases - this leads to an overdose and the development of drug dependence.
It is worth mentioning separately the compatibility of Phenobarbital with caffeine preparations and other medicinal stimulants. They antagonize with each other, having a toxic effect on the central nervous system. At the same time, the patient does not feel the full effect of stimulants or the sedative effect of Phenobarbital.
Drug analogues
Despite the fact that the drug is an tranquilizer of the old generation, it has many analogues that are actively used in medicine. Instructions for use with "Phenobarbital" reports that the administration of tranquilizers is carried out strictly as prescribed by the attending physician. This statement is true for all analogues of the drug.
Here is a list of drugs with an action similar to Phenobarbital:
- Topirol;
- Corvalol;
- Zeptol;
- Orfiril;
- Gabagamma
- "Depakine Chronosphere."
All these drugs have a strong sedative effect, some of them toxic effects on nerve cells, can reduce cognitive abilities at the time of admission. These are all drugs that have the same structural formula with barbiturate preparations. Today, there are more modern and safer new generation tranquilizers on sale that are not addictive and do not have a toxic effect on neurons.